Tuesday, April 16, 2013

honey, you're so sweet.



i like bread. i really do. in fact, i'm going to go ahead and say that i *love* bread. If carbs didn't have to love me back on my thighs, arms, and face, i'd eat it every day with possible everything. but alas, bread is something that i have to eat in moderation...no more than a couple of slices a day. but sometimes i binge...oh, do i binge! like making bread every few days.

so when i find a cool recipe that i like, i tend to try it and see if i like what comes out. i especially like the easy recipes since i don't have a lot of time...like this one. the recipe's been around for a while but i'm pretty new to bread baking so it's exciting to find something that's relatively healthy and tasty.

i did end up making this dough twice though. the first try had lack-luster results when i baked it in a bread pan with a steam tray underneath. i really expected some hole-y bread! instead, it came out dense and deflated. urgh... i wanted to try again though, this time doing the dutch oven method with no fridge time and and it came out more holey (if not by much) and less flat. it did have a large spread while baking but i'm putting that down to the size of my pot. *sigh* try and try again...

Traditional American-Style Honey Whole Wheat Bread
(adapted from King Arthur Flour)

3 cups bread flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
2 tbsp vital wheat gluten
1/4 cup honey
1 1/2 or so cups warm water
olive oil

In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, and yeast, and vital what gluten. In a measuring cup, combine the warm water (about 100 degrees in temp) and honey. Add wet to dry and mix to create a shaggy dough. If the dough is too dry, add additional water little by little until the dough is no longer dry but still sticky and shaggy. Transfer to an oiled bowl, cover and let rise until doubled (about an hour). Prepare a sheet of parchment paper to use for the dough later on.

When doubled, knead the dough in the bowl for a couple of minutes then transfer to the parchment paper. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise again until doubled (about 30 or so minutes).

Meanwhile, ready a cast iron pot with a lid in the oven on the middle rack and preheat to 450 degrees. Once the dough is ready and the oven is hot, carefully place the dough and parchment paper in the cast iron and cover immediately with the lid. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Reduce heat to 425 degrees, carefully remove the lid, and bake an additional 20 minutes until top is golden brown. Once done, transfer the bread to a cooling rack and cool completely before serving.

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

playing with chocolate.



such a grainy, blurry picture...*sigh*. another experiment with chocolate. this time in bread form! i had a bar of semi-sweet chocolate lying around and a bag of dried figs. what to do? bread of course! i also threw in some walnuts to add some texture. this not-so-sweet bread made for some interesting snackin's with fig spread, apples, and gouda... :)

Chocolate Walnut Fig Bread
(makes one large loaf)

3 cups bread flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 or so cups warm water
3 tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt
2 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup walnuts, toasted
1/2 cup soft dried figs, roughly chopped
olive oil

In a large bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, sugar, salt, and yeast. Add the warm water (about 100 degrees in temp) and mix to create a shaggy dough. If the dough is too dry, add water little by little until the dough is no longer dry but still sticky and shaggy. Transfer to an oiled bowl, cover and let rise until doubled (about an hour). Prepare a sheet of parchment paper to use for the dough later on.

When doubled, add the chocolate, walnuts, and figs and knead the dough in the bowl just until the add-ins have been incorporated into the dough. Transfer to the parchment paper, cover and let rise again until doubled (about 30 minutes).

Meanwhile, ready a cast iron pot with a lid in the oven on the middle rack and preheat to 450 degrees. Once the dough is ready and the oven is hot, carefully place the dough and parchment paper in the cast iron and cover immediately with the lid. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Reduce heat to 425 degrees, carefully remove the lid, and bake an additional 20 minutes until top is golden brown. Once done, transfer the bread to a cooling rack and cool completely before serving.

Monday, April 1, 2013

chocolate and wine.



it's always interesting what kinds of things that can get combined in food. cookies with savory herbs. sweet apples with pork. chocolate and wine. i have to confess...the last one wasn't really a big hit with me. when i purchased a bottle on sale from my local world market, i really didn't like the taste. it was a little weird and not as chocolatey as i thought it was going to be. ialthough, i'm thinking it was the brand, not necessarily so much the taste.

why? because chocolate and wine in cake form is excellent! and because i could really decide how much chocolate i put in the finished product, i can end up with a decadent chocolate cake with red wine notes. :)

for this cake, i ended up using a travel bottle of confectioner's chocolate red wine that i had bought to taste (which was awesome, by the way) since i wasn't about to open a new bottle of merlot. i also added some cinnamon and ancho chile powder to give it a spice boost...and just because i can, lol. i'd have to play around with this recipe a little more as i ended up with a thick crust around the edges (too high a heat, i think)...but all in all, it was a super tasty treat!

Red Wine Chocolate Cake
(barely adapted from 17 and Baking)

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
3/4 cup red wine (i used confectioner's chocolate red wine)
1/4 cup plain yogurt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup Dutch cocoa powder (i used regular cocoa)
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ancho chile powder

Preheat the oven to 325 F. Butter and flour a 9×5″ loaf pan.

Beat the butter on medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the sugars and cream until lightened and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the egg until well combined, then mix in the wine, yogurt, and vanilla. The batter might look curdled, but don’t worry. Sift in the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir with a spoon until there are no streaks of flour left, scraping down the sides of the bowl and being careful not to over mix.

Scrape the batter into the loaf pan and bake 60-70 minutes, or until a thin knife inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool the loaf in the pan on a rack for 10-15 minutes, then run a knife around the edges and turn it out.

the joy of cooking comically


The Joy of Cooking Comically

another awesome blog. stick figures, comics, cooking...all step-by-step and entertaining to boot! this makes me want to try his recipes just to see if he cooks as good as he draws, lol. 2am chili? yes please!